Beagle | beagle dogs

Beagle Dog | Beagle

Beagle

About Beagle

The term “Beagle”, although historically used to describe hunting dogs of a type such as the Hound, then more broadly, is now used for Beagles. Beagles are small dogs, only about one and a half feet tall. These small dogs are actually hunting dogs. A beagle is meant to work in packs, and as such, beagles do well around other dogs, preferring to form a bond. Having been bred for group play, beagles do get along with other dogs, and most also do well with cats, particularly when raised together. The breeding helps to make them highly social dogs, making them excellent pets to have in the home.

Since beagles were initially bred for hunting in packs, they do well around other dogs too, though may take a little longer to adapt to a cat’s home. Because they were bred to pursue a hunt long distance, Beagles are fairly determined dogs. Beagles are notoriously hard to train and control, and you need to make things fun and exciting so that the dogs will listen to what you want. These dogs are hunting dogs, designed to pick up odors and to cover large distances, and do their best work when taken on a long (or multiple) walks, given the opportunity to run around and explore the surrounding area by sniffing.

Like all hunting dogs, beagles have a keen sense of smell, and you should pay equal attention to your beagle should it catch a scent. This seems to be advantageous when hunting, as the beagles will remain centered in the trail of scent. As scent dogs, they love to sniff out anything and everything that you are walking, and doing this exercises your dog’s mind in addition to their body.

Beagles have one of the best developed noses, as well as high appetites, which is useful when trying to train this eager breed. Beagles are the dog breed that is used the most often for testing on animals, because of their size and passive nature. After experimenting with different breeds, the Beagle was chosen as it is relatively small, not intimidating for humans uncomfortable with dogs, easily groomed, smart, and works well at rewarding.

Beagle

By the 1800s, there were different sizes of beagles, but small pocket dogs were especially popular. From the Medieval period, the Beagle was used as the general description of the small hoarded dogs, although the dogs were very different from beagles.

A breed known as a pocket beagle was used for hunting by horse, because the dogs were under 10 inches high and could be carried into the coat pocket at the beginning of a hunt.

Beagles usually did well as rabbit hunters, and were usually alert, affectionate dogs. Beagles are great with children and are usually fine around other dogs, but due to Beagle hunting instincts, they should not be trusted around non-canine pets, unless they have been socialized to cats and other family animals as a juvenile.